Introduction

All Saints is a yearly celebration in which we are encouraged to remember
that we are literally 'all saints!'

We tend to think of people like Mother Theresa as saints. They are
special because their lives reflect the very best of human behaviour. As we
think of them and the way that they lived we are encouraged to be more like
them. We think of them as being holy, in the sense of living special godly
lives, separated from the grubbiness of usual daily living.

This is all well and good but we need to also remember that you and I are
saints as well. We might not live such remarkable lives as Mother Theresa,
but we are still saints. This is because we are already holy by virtue of
being God's children. We do not have to work hard trying to become God's
children, we already are! In the same way that a child might work hard to
please their parents, so we will want our lives to measure up, but we are
already God's, we are already saints because we call Him father.

At this time of year we admire saints, we use them as role models to
encourage ourselves that we can do better. But we do not lose sight of our
special kinship to God.

Almighty God,
you have knit together your elect
in one communion and fellowship
in the mystical body of your Son Christ our Lord:
grant us grace so to follow your blessed saints
in all virtuous and godly living
that we may come to those inexpressible joys
that you have prepared for those who truly love you;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord. CW

God of holiness,
your glory is proclaimed in every age:
as we rejoice in the faith of your saints,
inspire us to follow their example
with boldness and joy;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. CW

But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment will ever touch them.
In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died,
and their departure was thought to be a disaster, and their going from us to be their destruction;
but they are at peace. For though in the sight of others they were punished,
their hope is full of immortality. Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,
because God tested them and found them worthy of himself; like gold in the furnace he tried them,
and like a sacrificial burnt-offering he accepted them. In the time of their visitation they will shine forth,
and will run like sparks through the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples,
and the Lord will reign over them for ever. Those who trust in him will understand truth,
and the faithful will abide with him in love,
because grace and mercy are upon his holy ones,
and he watches over his elect.

Isaiah 25: 6-9

On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples
a feast of rich food, a feast of well-matured wines,
of rich food filled with marrow, of well-matured wines strained clear. And he will destroy on this mountain
the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
the sheet that is spread over all nations;
he will swallow up death for ever.
Then the Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces,
and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the LORD has spoken. It will be said on that day,
Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.
This is the LORD for whom we have waited;
let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation. NRSV

I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away.’And the one who was seated on the throne said, ‘See, I am making all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.’ Then he said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.’ NRSV

When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see.’ Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, ‘See how he loved him!’ But some of them said, ‘Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?’

Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, ‘Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’ So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, ‘Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.’ When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, and let him go.’ NRSV

God, the source of all holiness and giver of all good things:
may we who have shared at this table
as strangers and pilgrims here on earth
be welcomed with all your saints
to the heavenly feast on the day of your kingdom;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. CW

This is the week of our Commemoration Service, the week when Christians all over the world celebrate All Souls and All Saints. This year we are surrounded by images of death all over the world. The world’s media focussed on the death of Jamal Khashoggi as he visited the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Meanwhile tens of thousands of innocent civilians are being killed in Yemen. In Brickhill we have had two of the four extraordinary and brutal killings which have occurred in the last few weeks across Bedford. How true the words we hear at funeral service, ‘in the midst of life we are in death.’
All Souls and All Saints remind us of a deeper truth: in the midst of death, we are promised life. Our Gospel reading for All Saints Sunday is the story of the raising of Lazarus. In it we hear the reassuring words “Jesus wept.” These are some of the most important words in scripture because they remind us that for Jesus lives matter. We see clearly that God has a compassionate heart and how his heart must break at the plight of his creation in which there is so much suffering. The people of Yemen are each one a child of God and God cries at the grave of each and every one of his dead children.

Jesus sees the bigger picture, he knows about the resurrection and the triumph over death that he will bring about when he goes to battle against evil on the cross. Yet that vision of future victory does not make him immune to the suffering in the here and now of human existence when he see the suffering of grief and the pain of parting experienced by those who loved Lazarus. Jesus cannot stand by impassionate, he was deeply involved in the emotions of those around him and he is with us in our grief and suffering. He is also with us in the anger that we feel when confronted by our powerlessness in the face of state sponsored murder all over the world, some of which we supply the means by which it is carried out.

The raising of Lazarus in Bethany is a critical event in which the religious leaders decide enough is enough. Jesus has gone too far and because they see their power threatened Jesus must be stopped and killed. In the raising to life of Lazarus, Jesus makes inevitable his own arrest and crucifixion.

This week as we celebrate All Souls and All Saints it is a time of mixed emotions. There is mourning and sorrow for those who have gone before, as well as celebration and thanksgiving for all that has been lovely and good that we can treasure in our memories. It is also a time to look to the future days in which we are called to work for a good life for ourselves and others. Each day is to be treasured and celebrated as a gift and we must use our days carefully and wisely working to bring life not just for ourselves but for others. Charles Royden

Halloween
The last day of October marks the beginning in the church of a period known
as Hallowtide 'All Saintstide' when Christian remember those who have died.
All-Hallows Eve, or Halloween, October 31 has Celtic origins being
originally the feast of Sanhain/Samhain,(pronounced 'sow'inn) the last night
of the Celtic year, when all kinds of spirits were thought to be active. The
Celts believed that this was a time when the boundary between the spirit
world and the earthly world is at its thinnest and when spirits are most
likely to be seen on earth. It was a night of danger signifying the change
from Autumn to Winter, it was a night when feasts were held for the dead and
animals killed for the Winter. On this night fires were lit in the belief
that light had power over darkness, hence pumpkin lanterns to frighten away
witches and ghosts. When the Romans invaded Britain they included elements
of their harvest celebrations in which they honoured the goddess of the
fruits of trees, Pomona. Children still play games with apples at this time
of year.

So when did Sanhain become Halloween? By the 9th century Christianity had
spread into Celtic lands and the celebration became known as the Eve of All
Hallows and eventually Halloween.

All Saints Day, (All Hallows) November 1
The word Hallow means 'Holy', (blessed, consecrated or set apart in a
special way) and so 'All-Hallows' or 'All Saints' refers to the Saints—the
Holy Ones. Those who died for their faith or who lived extraordinary lives.
This day dates back to the 5th century Antioch in Syria when the church
dedicated a day to the memory of all those who had been killed for their
faith. Until then the church had remembered martyrs on special days of the
year, but there became more martyrs than days in the year, and there were
some whose names were not known. In Rome Boniface IV (608-615) had relics of
martyrs moved from the catacombs to the Pantheon. In 835 the 1st of November
was given the title 'All Saints.'

St. Martin of Tours is represented by a cloak which he cut in half to give
to a shivering beggar
Catherine of Alexandria is shown with a spiked wheel
St. Sebastian usually holds an arrow—as a reminder of the terrible methods
of their respective martyrdoms.
The saints are our ancestors on earth and precede us in heaven. Many
Christians experience a strong sense that the saints are still with us, and
that they watch over us and pray to God for us. The prayer from Methodist
Worship at the bottom of this page expresses the idea of knowing their
fellowship with us. Although dead, they are members of Christ's Church and
we use this day to give thanks for the lives of all the saints as they are
examples to us. Saints are created as signs of hope, that the gospel really
can change lives. Somebody is not made a saint at canonisation, it is rather
an acknowledgement that somebody was a saint and is therefore in heaven and
not neglectful of the needs of the world, through the communion of saints.

All Souls Day, November 2
In the New Testament, 'saint' is often used to describe all those who are
followers of Christ, the people called to holiness in him. Not just those
who were extra-specially good. So does this apply to Christians now? Are all
saints? The answer must be Yes! So on this day we pray not just for those
who have been specially recognised as Saints, but for all of our loved ones.
In 1048 Odilo, the Abbot of the Benedictine Monastery at Cluny near Paris
instructed his monks to use this day as a day of remembrance and prayer for
all the departed, this day was made official in the 14C.

In the Christian Church we remember the Church not just as those who are
living but also those who have died, they are just as much the church as we
are and the Christian Church has two names for this, those who are living
are called the church militant, and those have died are called the church
triumphant.

This time of year is an important time to cherish the memory of those who
have died and who have gone before us. As we celebrate their memory we can
know and be glad that they share with us in Christ's eternal kingdom. People
find the whole idea of death difficult and to have a special day to remember
those who have died is not an easy thing for some people. At this time in
the year of the church we can really think and speak about those who have
died and not in hushed tones. We can remember and feel our loss. We
celebrate the lives of those whom we have known and love and we pray for
their peace.

Holy God you have called witnesses from every nation and revealed your glory
in their lives.
Grant us the same faith and love that, following their example,
we may be sustained by their fellowship and rejoice in their triumph;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
(Methodist Worship)

For all the saints who went before us,
Who have spoken to our hearts and touched us with your fire,
We praise you, O God

For all the saints who live beside us,
Whose weaknesses and strengths are woven into our own,
We praise you, O God

Who challenge us to change the world with them,
We praise you, O God
Janet Morley
(in Bread of Tomorrow, Christian Aid and SPCK, 192, 2004)

O Lord, in every age you reveal yourself to the childlike and lowly of heart,
and from every race you write names in your book of life, give us the simplicity
and faith of your saints, that loving you above all things, we may be what you
would have us be, and to do what you would have us do. So may we be numbered
with your saints in glory everlasting. Amen.

Father God, you have brought us near to the spirits of those who have been made
perfect, and to an innumerable company of angels; grant us during our earthly
pilgrimage to abide in their fellowship, and in the heavenly country to become
partakers of their joy. Amen

Lord God, we thank you for calling us into the company of those who trust in
Christ and seek to obey His will. May your Spirit guide and strengthen us in
mission and service to your world; for we are strangers no longer but pilgrims
together on the way to your Kingdom. Amen Prayer of the Inter Church Process
(The Swanwick Declaration)

May almighty God grant you to be numbered with the saints in glory everlasting;
and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be
among you and remain with you always. Amen

Additional Material

The last day of October marks the beginning in the church of a
period known as Hallowtide 'All Saintstide' when Christian remember those who
have died.

All-Hallows Eve, or Halloween, October 31
Halloween has Celtic origins being originally the feast of Sanhain, the last
night of the Celtic year, when all kinds of spirits were thought to be active.
It was a night of danger signifying the change from Autumn to Winter, it was a
night when feasts were held for the dead and animals killed for the Winter. On
this night fires were lit in the belief that light had power over darkness,
hence pumpkin lanterns to frighten away witches and ghosts. The ashes of fires
were sprinkled on the land to frighten the evil spirits away. In England
bonfires are now lit on Guy Fawkes Night, but other countries still stick to
Halloween. On this day people play with apples, apple bobbing was done in the
Celtic belief that the branches of the apple tree helped dead souls to pass into
their heaven. They dress up as witches and evil spirits and ghosts. We make
pumpkins and put candles inside and the idea is that the light and scary face
will frighten evil spirits away. More recently we have seen the spreading of
children dressed up behaving badly doing trick or treat, the practice seemingly
fitting in with the idea of a time of devilment.

Of course many people are unsure about whether children should be involved at
all in all of this. Personally I made a pumpkin with my children this year and I
think Halloween can be a good time for children to explore the concept of the
dark side of life. Within the boundaries of games and costumes they can
experience their fear of the dark and their images of evil, all in the safety of
make believe and items bought from the supermarket. But evil can be more
sinister and just as some people are injured by fireworks so too there are those
who are affected by involvement in sinister rituals. It is important that
Halloween remains a game and that children's pranks are kept within the realms
of play. As Christians there are lessons which we must bring out of Halloween

As Christians we need not fear any enemies. Even if we walk through the valley
of the shadow of death God is still with us. There are no powers of darkness
which can overcome us God has triumphed over evil
Impress on children that Halloween is the eve of the holy day of All Saints and
All Souls.

All Saints Day, November 1
The word Hallow means 'Holy', and so All-Hallows refers to the Saints—the Holy
Ones. Those who died for their faith or who lived extraordinary lives. This day
dates back to the 5th century Antioch in Syria when the church dedicated a day
to the memory of all those who had been killed for their faith. Until then the
church had remembered martyrs on special days of the year, but there became more
martyrs than days in the year, and there were some whose names were not known.

A saint is not given blanket approval, we know that they may have faults. A
proverb tells us that 'a man cannot be a hero to his own valet,' the message
being that familiarity breeds contempt, and it is probably true that the
definition of a saint is somebody who lived a long time ago and who has not been
researched well enough. They also led mucky lives and yet we applaud their
courage as examples of their commitment and faith. The saints are honoured
because of their heroism, their courage, it has nothing to do with station in
life.

A saint could be described as somebody who has co-operated with the grace of
God, known the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. They will all be dead.
They will have made some sacrifice for the people or the community in which they
lived, they all tried to follow Jesus. Saints are often remembered for
particular deeds of kindness and symbols are used which are related to their
special deeds,

St. Martin of Tours is represented by a cloak which he cut in half to give to a
shivering beggar
Catherine of Alexandria is shown with a spiked wheel &
St. Sebastian usually holds an arrow—as a reminder of the terrible methods of
their respective martyrdoms.
The saints are our ancestors on earth and precede us in heaven. Many Christians
experience a strong sense that the saints are still with us, and that they watch
over us and pray to God for us. Although dead they are members of Christ's
Church and we use this day to give thanks for the lives of all the saints as
they are examples to us. Saints are created as signs of hope, that the gospel
really can change lives. Somebody is not made a saint at canonisation, it is
rather an acknowledgement that somebody was a saint and is therefore in heaven
and not neglectful of the needs of the world, through the communion of saints.

There are many saints who are known only to their neighbours and God alone.
Perhaps you too could be a saint—But in the NT saint is often used to describe
all those who are followers of Christ, the people called to holiness in him. Not
just those who were extra-specially good. So does this apply to Christians now?
Are all saints? The answer must be Yes! All Saints Day is an occasion to
celebrate those who never picked up the title 'saint', but were nevertheless
known as holy to God. In other words, All Saints Day is a celebration of
ordinary Christians everywhere, at every time, who have tried to live the Gospel
life.

You might find it hard to accept that people who are just ordinary can be
saints. The saints are people who are supposed to be good at things ordinary
people like us are not good at. They have qualities we don't have. They have
patience, kindness, gentleness and self-control. We envy them their qualities;
that's why we call them saints in the first place. Saints are other people,
people we read about, but not very many of the people we actually know. The
trouble is, seen in that way, saints can be people who put us down, they're so
different, so special that we'd never recognise one if we saw one. They put us
down, because we find ourselves so contrasted to them. They are much better,
much holier than I can ever be—that's what a saint is. But might it not be that
I have qualities or virtues that other people envy and aspire to? Might it not
be that I'm putting myself down wrongly?

Surely, none of us can be so far from sainthood that we totally lack all saintly
virtues? I might lack patience, but perhaps I have modesty. I might lack
courage, but perhaps I have charity. In fact, those who are trying hardest to
practise their Christian faith may be those who are least aware of their own
best qualities and virtues. So let's not put ourselves down by comparing
ourselves unfavourably with the saints. Let's recognise that we have saintly
qualities too, perhaps not always as well-developed or focussed as in those
recognised as saints, but they're there.

We all find ourselves in situations from time to time which can evoke a saintly,
holy response in us. Most of us have at some time known poverty, worked for
justice, been bereaved, suffered for conscience sake, and so on. You and I can
be saints, when we respond to the challenge of a particular situation, using a
conscience formed by prayer and faith in Jesus Christ. Let's not be so obsessed
with our failings that we forget our moments of saintliness.

Today is a good day to remember that we are all saints. We are all called to be
special ones, chosen by God and set apart for his service. We are all called to
make sacrifices for our Lord as he gave the ultimate sacrifice for us. We are
all called to share in the benefits of being his chosen ones to inherit the
kingdom of God.

All Souls Day, November 2
On this day we pray not just for the Saints but for all of our loved ones. In
1048 Odilo, the Abbot of the Benedictine Monastery at Cluny near Paris
instructed his monks to use this day as a day of remembrance and prayer for all
the departed, this day was made official in the 14C. In the Christian Church we
remember the Church not just as those who are living but also those who have
died, they are just as much the church as we are and the Christian Church has
two names for this, those who are living are called the church militant, and
those have died are called the church triumphant. This time of year is an
important time to cherish the memory of those who have died and who have gone
before us. As we celebrate their memory we can know and be glad that they share
with us in Christ's eternal kingdom.

Death has lost its sting for us! People find the whole idea of death difficult
and to have a special day to remember those who have died is not an easy thing
for some people. An old and respected elder of the Church was once asked, "What
will happen to you when you die?" He answered, "I shall immediately depart into
an eternal life of joy and bliss—but come now, let us not talk of such
unpleasant subjects!" Wonderful doctrine, great news, the heart of the
gospel—but no one wants to talk about it. Woody Allen said, "You know Death can
really spoil a weekend." But not just death but also talk of death. So we hide
behind humour sometimes. They say that when Oscar Wilde was on his deathbed he
raised himself up on one arm, pointed to the wall, and said, "Either that
wallpaper goes or I do." And so he did. Sometimes we just avoid the subject
altogether. You can turn to the obituary section of the daily paper and find
that we "pass away," "pass on," "go to our reward," "or are reunited with loved
ones," We do so "peacefully," "suddenly" or "after a long illness." But it takes
a powerful magnifying glass ever to find the words, "he died on Friday."

In our society we are protected from death. It is possible for a person to go
through their whole life and not to be in contact with a dead body. A fear of
death is natural but a tendency to turn our back on the dead and the bereaved is
not a Christian thing to do. For Christians Death is not such a distressing
subject and we must not allow our minds and our thinking to become distorted by
the ideas of those around us who have no faith. At this time in the year of the
church we can really think and speak about those who have died and not in hushed
tones. We can remember and feel our loss and that is the purpose of the service
which we will hold tonight. We celebrate the lives of those whom we have known
and love and we pray for their peace, and of course it is a time to recognise
that these people had impact upon our lives and are a continuing presence in our
memories, in our affections, and in their abiding influence upon us.

One of the most common misunderstandings of Christianity is that it is primarily
concerned with giving people a recipe for how to be good, or in the words of
Dorothy Sayers "How to be kind to granny and the cat." But this misses it all.
As Ernest Bloch, the German philosopher says: "It was not the morality of the
sermon on the mount which enabled Christianity to conquer Roman Paganism but the
belief that Jesus had been raised from the dead." What God has in mind for us is
something of a new order, as different as a seed is from its bloom, as
different, he says, as the earth is from the stars. I tell you a mystery, said
the Apostle Paul, 'we shall not all sleep but we shall all be changed.'

Let's be clear here about one thing. When we say the word 'resurrection' we are
not talking about the mere revival of the life you and I already know. God
forbid that 70 or 80 years of aching bones, failing health and moral failings
should stretch into an eternity! We are talking about a new and wonderful kind
of existence where you will be you, your character, body, mind and emotion all
made perfect. The you will be the real you at last. A story is sometimes told to
children of water larvae little beetle like creatures that live beneath the
water and they one by ones loose their friends as they go towards the surface of
the water and they don't see them anymore. Then they agree that the next one to
go will come back and tell the others what is going on. The next one leaves and
as he passes through the surface of the water he becomes a dragonfly. He flies
around and he knows how wonderful it is, but as he tries to go back through the
water and tell his friends he cannot, he finds that he is unable to return. But
he doesn't worry because he knows that one day they too will leave their watery
existence to live a new life.

I like the way C. S. Lewis finishes his Narnia Chronicles, books written for
children but best read by adults. The closing paragraph of the last chapter in
the last book called The Last Battle put its this way: The things that began to
happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them. And for
us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all
lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning of the real
story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only
been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning chapter One
of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on forever: in
which every chapter is better than the one before.

Or as Paul tells it:

O Death where is thy sting? O Grave where is thy Victory?
Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

Commentary

All Saints’ and preparing for the season of Advent belong
together, as the celebration of All Saints’ reminds us of the judgement of God.
The Saints who stand before the throne of glory have also stood before the
throne of judgement. Whilst we sometimes think of Saints in terms of spiritual
giants who lived many years ago, the biblical understanding of a Saint is
someone whom God has sanctified and made holy.

For the Old Testament people of God, this meant belonging to
God’s Chosen People, the Jews, to be a son of Abraham as Jesus puts it in the
Gospel reading.

For New Testament believers and beyond, it means belonging to
the Body of Christ, a people made holy through Jesus’ sacrifice

Being a Saint has implications as to the way we live our lives.

‘But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation,
a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called
you out of darkness into His wonderful light - 1 Peter 2 v 9.

As Christians we are caught up in "so great a cloud of
witnesses," whilst also watching, waiting, for the coming again of Christ, when
all things shall be gathered up into the Kingdom of God.

All Saints' Day is also known as All Hallows' Day, hallow means
to make holy, to consecrate or to honour, and it’s from the name All Hallows'
that we derive Hallowe'en (the Eve of All Hallows). Throughout the year the
church commemorates specific saints, but on 1st November we commemorate and
celebrate all saints and thus God's mercy and love for us too. This celebration
of saints started around the the 8th century when Pope Boniface IV designated
1st November as All Saints' Day to specifically honour those saints that didn't
have a special day of their own. By the 9th century it had become a major feast
in the church calendar in England and continues today.

Although All Saints Day is actually 1st November, the church
celebrates All Saints’ Sunday today. In England "All Saints" is the second most
popular dedication of English churches with over 1250 churches dedicated to All
Saints. All Souls' Day, also known as the Commemoration of the Faithful
Departed, comes the day after All Saints’ Day. This day provides an opportunity
to commemorate "those we have loved but see no longer” and recognises the pain
of human grief and fragility in a way that an All Saints' Day celebration
cannot. It is for this reason that we always have a special service of
commemoration of the faithful departed at this time of year. Our service will
take place at 3.00pm on 12 November at St Mark’s Church. Sam Cappleman

Who is in the Communion of Saints?
As early as the second century, Christians gathered for worship at the tombs
of the martyrs, celebrating the power of God’s grace in the lives of these
faithful men and women. From this came the early understanding that the
phrase ‘the Communion of Saints’ referred to the enduring bond between the
faithful on earth and the faithful who had gone before, especially those
whose witness was crowned with martyrdom. While all Christians are properly
called saints, the word “saint” soon became a title of honour referring to
exemplary lives among the faithful, and most notably the lives of martyrs.
The celebration of saints as we know it (i.e. those who served God but died
in the faith rather than for the faith) comes later, about the 7th century.
Egbert of York brought the festival to England and by the 9th century it had
become a major feast in the church calendar in England. Today, we continue
to celebrate a Communion of Saints that embraces all Christians, past
present and future; including those whose lives are not necessarily like us,
or whose lives are not notably marked by saintliness! ‘We live among saints
but saints are not perfect. Their weaknesses and strengths are woven into
our own’. But together we are part of that great community God calls His
saints.

The inextricable link between holiness and the Communion of Saints
All Saints' Day is also known as All Hallows' Day, hallow meaning to make
holy, consecrate and honour. The theme of God’s holiness permeates the
entire Bible and as human beings we are invited to participate in the
holiness of God through His Son, Jesus Christ. To be holy is to participate
in the holiness of Jesus who is “the way, the truth, and the life”. The
Communion of Saints, the communio sanctorum, implies, first of all,
communion, communion with Christ and through Him and the power of the Holy
Spirit, communion and a relationship with our God, who is all holy.

Our own holiness starts then with a relationship with God through Jesus
Christ, the mediator of all holiness. Our holiness also entails being in
communion, part of our journey with one another and all the saints who have
gone before us. Holiness therefore implies relationships; relationships
which sometimes make it feel like it’s very difficult to be holy! But
however challenging some of our relationships seem, it’s impossible to be in
communion alone. God’s own holiness is part of being in communion, a
communion of Father, Son, and Spirit dwelling together in love. To enter
into a relationship with God is to enter into a relationship with all who
share in that same fellowship of God; past, present and future. Jut as we
are called into a relationship with God, we are called into a relationship
with each other, the Communion of Saints, the Priesthood of all believers.

Our relationship and fellowship with Christ and with one another will never
be complete in this life, but is emphasised and strengthened as we together
draw closer to him and to one another, and will be perfected in eternity.
Together we are in union and communion with all the faithful saints, and as
Christians we are called to live out that unity and communion, whatever our
denomination or race or background. One of the statements from the Second
Vatican council expressed this unity and communion as ‘…that among all the
nations of earth there is but one People of God, which takes its citizens
from every race, making them citizens of a kingdom which is of a heavenly
and not an earthly nature. For all the faithful scattered throughout the
world are in communion with each other in the Holy Spirit.’ We live in faith
with all those who have gone before us, we, like they are on a journey of
faith, a pilgrimage which leads to God. Jesus takes us as we are, with all
our diverse backgrounds, perspectives and relationships, takes us even
though we often feel far from holy, and, invites us to be holy, as He is
holy, and to join with Him in the communion of saints.

Our Holy Communion links our holiness, our sainthood, to our daily
experience. We start the Eucharist with contrite hearts, confess our sins,
receive God’s forgiveness and pray the Kyrie Eleison. We listen to the words
of scripture from the bible and through the sermon. We confess our faith and
give thanks to God in prayers and intercessions. We receive from God the
body and blood of Jesus and together are sent out with the task of renewing
the earth. Communion is not the end but the beginning of mission, mission as
a Community of Saints, made whole and made holy through God and His gifts.
Sam Cappleman

ThisisChurch.com acknowledges the following websites which you may also find helpful in considering the lectionary this week:- www.bbc.co.uk/religion, www.textweek.com, www.lectionary.org, www.gbod.org/worship, www.methodist.org.uk, www.churchtimes.co.uk, http://www.cofe.anglican.org